


Through the Looking Glass

by drunkenshrimp (svnwritten)



Series: a dimension of a small wonder [2]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Baekhyun is Hot and Whipped, But the drama is delicious, Crack and Angst, Demon! Baekhyun, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Implied Sexual Content, Jongdae is a Little Shit, M/M, Romance, Sexual Tension, They make it work despite the drama, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:40:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29129682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/svnwritten/pseuds/drunkenshrimp
Summary: Dum inter homines sumus, colamus humanitatem - As long as we are among humans, let us be humane.But Jongdae isn’t among humans anymore, is he?
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Kim Jongdae | Chen
Series: a dimension of a small wonder [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2137464
Comments: 16
Kudos: 68





	Through the Looking Glass

**Author's Note:**

> Big shout-out to @.rainflower_x on twt who made it possible for my demon! Baekhyun au to get a sequel!
> 
> This fic probably makes much more sense if you read first part of this series Mirror Mirror On The Wall!

Jongdae got fucked over. Quite literally actually. First, he was fucked, then it was over. Over for him. The peak of dumbassery. Because who could have guessed that hooking-up with an actual lust demon - on whom Jongdae already had a big fat crush - would be a good idea.

“You apparently,” Jongdae pointed at his reflection with his toothbrush, “You thought it was a good idea.”

He spat a mouthful of toothpaste bubbles into the sink. The minty aftertaste in his mouth could barely hide the bitterness biting at his tongue for weeks.

Jongdae ruffled his hair, squared up his shoulders and looked into the mirror once again. 

So what if he had a crush on a lust demon who was occasionally fucking him into oblivion? So what if he was in love with someone who viewed him as food (although in a sexy way)? So what if his poor gay heart was beating for a creature straight from humanity’s wet dreams? So what?

Jongdae had been doing it for months now. He could  _ fucking _ manage. 

Baekhyun’s head peeked behind the door frame and he sent Jongdae a blinding smile.

“Rise and shine, buttercup,” he leaned forward and pinched the purple bruise on Jongdae’s shoulder, making him yelp. 

In the mirror, Jongdae saw his bare chest, decorated with nothing but a long, silver chain with a tiny loop pendant. Against the pale of his skin, it looked like a glistering oval diamond, or a pearly ring, or a token of being taken. Jongdae slapped himself internally. He either stopped entertaining himself with these absurd ideas or he would have a stroke at goddamn 8 in the morning.

“Morning, Baekhyun,” he murmured and started rinsing his mouth. The memory of their nights tasted sweet only when both of them were still in bed.

Baekhyun’s fingers traced the skin, following the tense line of Jongdae’s shoulder. As always, when he teased, and when he was being sweet (too sweet for Jongdae’s good), his touch was gentle and delicate. As if Baekhyun was afraid that he would break if he wasn’t careful enough. Jongdae rolled his eyes and shifted, pressing his skin to Baekhyun’s fingers. The demon smirked, like he was waiting for that, and slipped his hand down to dig his fingertips into the meat on Jongdae’s back. The thumbs pressed hard into the skin and Jongdae almost choked on the water in his mouth. A groan raised in his chest but he tapped down the noise, leaving it as purr inside him. He didn’t have to look at Baekhyun to know that he was smiling. 

A shadow fell on the white ceramic beauty of Jongdae’s sink and a hot breath fell on his neck. It felt ticklish. He would laugh if it wasn’t for the coal chunks incandescent in his stomach.

“Why so tense, my pretty? Why so grumpy?” the fingers of Baekhyun’s other hand slipped down Jongdae’s chest. 

Jongdae spat into the sink and his hands instantly flew back to the mug with warm water. It was easier to pretend that he couldn’t talk. The red colour of his ears was enough to drag him down anyway. 

“Classes,” he mumbled and took another mouthful of water. 

Baekhyun laughed and gently patted Jongdae’s ass. It was only for Jongdae’s exquisite self-control and razor-sharp mind that he didn’t moan at the touch. The sensation of Baekhyun’s hand against his skin was still too vivid in his memory.

_ Gods in hell, that’s why the mornings after were always the absolute worst. _

“Remind me next time to do a better job at turning your brain into a gutter. You need to stop thinking about classes,” Baekhyun rolled his eyes and stepped out of the bathroom, making the room for some air. “By the way, I was about to warm up left-overs, you want some?”

Jongdae swallowed the toothpaste-y water and, trying not to cringe at the burning in his throat, looked over his shoulder, saying:

“It’s the least you can do after I warmed your dick yesterday, right?”

He was pretty sure it was the minty bubbles sticking to his lips that made Baekhyun duck his head down and chuckle, grumbling something about bottoms’ audacity ‘these days’. Jongdae shook his head and looked back at his reflection, red splotches painting his cheeks and neck, making the purplish bruises even more radiant.

If his reflection could talk, if it moved on its own, it would be tsk-ing and shaking his head at Jongdae’s hopelessly enamoured shenanigans. 

✗✗✗

Sometimes it takes one bottle of gin to pull a demon out of your ancient mirror. And sometimes it takes an awfully long, lonely evening to pull that mirror out of your closet and remind yourself of the night that changed your life. And, yes, alright, gin was still involved in this mix, but this time it had nothing to do with Jongdae’s actions. Besides, this time it didn’t taste like a devil's kiss thanks to the addition of orange juice and- Jongdae laughed quietly.

“Devil’s kiss,” he repeated, sipping happily the contents of his glass. On the contrary to his stomach and his heart, the glass was cold and heavy. Grounding in a way alcohol shouldn’t feel like.

Jongdae tilted his head, admiring the mirror in front of him. He rarely allowed himself to take it out of his wardrobe. Maybe, because deep down inside, he was afraid that if Baekhyun saw it he could desire to go back home. The glass in Jongdae’s hand shook slightly as an unpleasant shiver ran down his spine. Of course, it was not his intention to keep Baekhyun a hostage - he doubted he would be able to keep a demon hostage anyway - but he just didn’t want to tempt the heavens. Or hells, in this particular case.

But today was different. Today Jongdae could stare at the mirror as much as he wanted with Baekhyun being away. He was rarely away nowadays, one of the perks of working as a Twitch streamer. The choice of profession wildered Jongdae still. Here was Jongdae - age 25, barely capable of turning on his nintendo. There was Baekhyun - age god knows how old, habitant of the 21st century for a couple of months - a pro at most of video and computer games. 

_ “What can I say, I have magical fingers,” Baekhyun laughed once, wiggling his fingers at Jongdae. He had once again beaten him in Mario Kart. _

_ “I have one magical finger. This one,” Jongdae grumbled and flipped him the bird. _

_ Baekhyun ended up laughing so hard that the couch beneath them started shaking. _

Biting his lips to contain his smile, Jongdae reached out and let his nails scratch the frame of the mirror. Touching it felt like touching a long-forgotten lover - the reality unable to live up to the memory. 

Jongdae remembered the frame being warm, back then, on the night when Baekhyun crawled out of the shadows and clawed into Jongdae’s heart. Now, it was cold - like the glass in his hands. 

Jongdae put the gin away and moved a bit closer. His little finger slipped between two curls of the frame’s golden ornaments. Despite being made of precious metal - hard and expensive - under his touch it was almost cotton-like soft. Jongdae wondered how he could miss that earlier. Encouraged, he laid the rest of his fingertips on the frame, relishing in the way the polished surface felt against his skin. 

It was almost as smooth as Baekhyun’s chest. Almost as deliciously silky as his hair strands tangled in Jongdae’s grip.

Jongdae flushed red and tired pushing these thoughts at the back of his mind. Baekhyun wasn’t there and it was not smart getting too heated without him around. Nothing, not his usual tricks, not the fanciest toys, helped him let out some steam once he started sleeping with Baekhyun.

“It’s that magical, stupid demon’s dick,” Jongdae mumbled under his breath. The heat was painting his cheeks scolding hot.

Almost subconsciously, seeking a way to cool himself down, he pressed his forehead against the flat surface of the mirror. It was just as cold as its frame. And it made him feel calm, strangely calm. 

He sighed against the glass, wishing he could melt into its coolness. 

“ _ Dum inter homines sumus, colamus humanitatem, _ ” he whispered into the glass, like he was sharing a secret. Months ago he had no idea what these words meant, now he had them imprinted in his heart, like it was a promise. “As long as we are among humans, let us be humane.” he translated with his whole chest, voice braver, bolder too.

For months he tried to search the universe - internet - to read every possible interpretation of this quote. He didn’t find even one that satisfied him. Or one that applied to this particular situation. Although, he had to admit that summoning a demon from a mirror was pretty damn specific.

His eyes darted up and stopped at the engraved quote.

“ _ Dum inter homines sumus, colamus humanitatem, _ ” he repeated. “When are you not humane then?” he asked himself, “When would I be not humane?  I am human, and I think, nothing human is alien to me. ” he hiccuped, trying to recall the Latin version of the quote. 

One of the least expected bonuses of living with a demon was that at some point he started learning Latin, since it was the language that Baekhyun mentioned being most familiar for him. Turned out that ancient quotes were one of the easiest ways to memorize that grammar, so Jongdae knew at least a few dozens of them, 

“ _ Hommhmmhmm-'' _ hummed Jongdae with annoyance, his eyebrows knitted, _ “Homo sumhu-  _ gods this is terrible...  _ h-homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto. _ ” he gasped out finally. If Baekhyun was around he would certainly criticise his flat pronunciation. 

But Baekhyun wasn’t around so Jongdae mentally high-fived himself for the effort. Tiredly, he blinked his eyes to open them fully and looked at his semi-empty glass with gin. Upon further examination, he came to the conclusion that he added way too little orange juice. The drink didn’t look orange, it barely looked yellow. Frankly, it looked like piss. 

“And if I ever decide to be a bartender, please stop me,” Jongdae rolled his eyes, before taking the glass into his hands. 

With the drink being semi-translucent, the dim light coming from the mirror looked like tiny shreds of ice or silver snowflakes. _ Very pretty.  _

“At least the mirror makes this shit look nice,” Jongdae nodded, snuggling closer into the surface, pressing his fingers into the frame. 

It was in that moment, when he felt the mirror vibrate against his skin, did he realize he was fucked.

“Oh shit,” he gasped, trying to move away but it was too late.

Like poisonous vines, like mercury and the liquid silver, the surface of the mirror was sticking to his skin and crawling further, covering his arms with a thick layer of sparkling magic. It felt like a very heavy and very tight winter sweater. 

“Dear fucking god!” Jongdae screeched as the invisible power started pulling him closer to the mirror, “Crap, crap, crap, crap!” he cried, tussling hopelessly.

The glass fell out of his numb fingers. Bittersweet drink spilt against the floor, the moment Jongdae disappeared in the mirror. Its dim sparkle was all but gone.

✗✗✗

The first sensation was the sound. The sound of his blood swooshing in his ears. The irregular noise of his heartbeat. The reassuring softness of his breath. 

For a hot moment of panic, Jongdae couldn’t see anything - just utter and complete darkness that seemed to swallow him whole. 

“It’s your eyes, your eyes are closed, dimwit,” the tiny voice of reason suggested to him.

He opened them by millimetres - unsure and afraid of the world that could await for him. 

Purple light poured into his vision like a flood - thick, dark and splattered with red glittering spots. It took Jongdae a minute to comprehend that what he was looking at was in fact a sky. 

“Oh, god,” he groaned, right hand painfully colliding with his face with a loud slap of dismay. “Dear gods in heaven, what is it this time?” he sighed.

He blinked slowly, ignoring the anxiety stirring down his stomach. For a while, he just laid there - admiring the oddity of the sky and the strangeness of its red stars. The longer he was resting - pretending that he was melting into the ground - the more aware he was of his surroundings. As his heartbeat became a little bit more calm and stable, the noises of the world grew more prominent, more forceful. It sounded as if something was burning in the distance. Jongdae shuddered and sharply inhaled the air, searching for a hint of smoke.

But the air was filled with the heavy, almost suffocating, scent of incense and roses. Sweet and deep, making his head spin and his heart beat faster.

At last, he pushed himself off the ground and looked around.

He was in the garden. Big, wild, unkempt garden, crowded with rose bushes and wild vines. The eeriest thing, however, was that every flower was inky blue and every leaf was deeply emerald. As if everything was painted with darkness.

Tentatively, Jongdae reached out to touch the petals of the closest rose. He wondered - would they feel like a crepe paper or would they slit his skin open.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” pointed out a voice coming from behind Jongdae.

“Shit,” he hissed and twisted around, eyes almost popping out of their sockets. “Warn a guy next time.” he heaved, fighting the primary urge to step away and run behind the horizon. 

The… creature was sitting on the frame of the massive mirror. The mirror which was - what Jongdae realized just now - standing in the middle of the garden as if it belonged there. The object, however, wasn’t Jongdae’s main concern. Not, when a bird-like, winged creature with big horns was staring at him with such an interest. Only their face wore similarities to a human - big, unblinking eyes, full lips and features that looked almost majestic.

The creature smiled at Jongdae, revealing the row of ebony teeth. 

“Hello, lovely mortal, what are you doing here, sweetheart?” they asked in a mellow, honey-like voice. It sounded male, but who was Jongdae to judge. 

“I… I actually don’t know,” Jongdae looked around once again, the dull fear sinking into his heart, colouring it as dark as the roses. “I don’t know,” he repeated louder, with a pinch of panic. “I kind of just… was dumped here by this thing.” he pointed at the mirror with accusation.

Perched on the mirror creature jumped off the frame, his wings fluttering as he did. They stepped closer to Jongdae, watching him curiously. Jongdae wished he could move, but it felt like his legs were made out of rock.

“That’s a dream?” he asked more than stated.

The creature laughed. They had a pretty laugh. “Certainly not. Although, I assume you wish it was.” their dark eyes were shining brightly. “I’m Jongin,” they added.

“Jongdae. I’m human,” replied Jongdae, opting not to shake Jongin’s hand. He bit his lips with embarrassment when Jongin shook his head with disbelief and amusement.

Jongin smirked, “Oh, that’s a sneaky way to ask the awkward question, isn’t it? If you’re so curious I’m a demon, baby.”

Jongdae frowned. Logically speaking Jongin couldn’t be anything other than a demon but... he looked nothing like Baekhyun.  _ Beautiful Baekhyun with crimson eyes, soft curves and hard muscles. So very human Baekhyun. _

“Not every day you see a demon, huh?” Jongin arched his eyebrow. He sniffed the air. “Oh,” his eyes widened, “But wait, I don’t think it is your first time with a demon, Jongdae.” Jongdae’s cheeks flushed, “In fact, I think that you are pretty close with one of us. You certainly smell like one,” he added and - fast like lightning - grabbed Jongdae’s hand, turning it to see the inside of the wrist, “But there’s no demon’s mark… Curious case…” 

Jongdae yanked his hand back, cradling it to his chest. 

“You are no one to assume my relationship with Baekhyun,” he grumbled.

Upon hearing the name, Jongin’s expression changed completely. Shifting from amusement to surprise up to pure amazement and wonder.

“Baekhyun?” he repeated. “As in Byun Baekhyun?”

Jongdae shrugged, “I just call him Baekhyun.”

Jongin squeaked. “Oh, it’s for sure Byun Baekhyun!” he clapped his hands. “You should have told me earlier, I will bring you to Soo right away!” he explained and took Jongdae’s hand, tugging him forward. “Come along!” he added.

“W-wait, who? Who’s Soo? Hello?” he asked, letting himself be led across the garden. But his questions fell deaf on Jongin’s ears. It was as if his excitement completely blocked his hearing, as if he wanted to focus on nothing but going forward.

Jongdae had no idea why he allowed himself to be dragged into the unknown by a demon named Jongin. But he also supposed that it could be the best chance to save his own life.

✗✗✗

They walked through the garden, they walked through a massive, lacquer ed door and they walked down the various hallways and multiple staircases. Jongin’s smooth skin was getting slick with Jongdae’s sweaty hand. He had an inkling that he should be scared for his life, but all he could think of was the almost unbearable embarrassment.

“ _ Think straight, Kim Jongdae, _ ” he reprimanded himself internally, “ _ Apparently inside a mirror, there’s a demon’s realm and you’re walking through a palace of Eternal Doom and Darkness, escorted by a man who looks like an offspring of a harpy and an ancient god. Start thinking about your survival instead of the impression you make. _ ” He let out what seemed to be an almost silent whimper.

Jongin immediately looked over his shoulder, his head twisting in a way that surely would be painfully for a human but certainly wasn’t for a bird-like demon.

“We going too fast?” he asked and if Jongdae didn’t know better he would say that he sounded worried.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and looked at Jongin with earnestness pouring out of his eyes. 

“Nah, just a tiny existential crisis,” Jongdae replied somberly. 

Jongin nervously licked his lips. “Um-” he said awkwardly.

Jongdae waved him off, “Don’t worry, it’s a normal Friday evening for me.” 

That made Jongin stop completely. A small crease formed between his eyebrows. Jongdae felt a little bit bad for making him concerned like that. From the other hand,  _ he _ was the one stuck with his hand in a stranger-demon’s grip. Jongin hummed thoughtfully.

“I’ll take you to Soo anyway. He always knows what to do.” he nodded with determination after what seemed like an eternity. 

It occurred to Jongdae that time really flies differently with demons. His thoughts idly drifted to Baekhyun. He couldn’t help but wonder when he would he be back home from his dumb twitch streamer’s convention. He couldn’t help but hope that Baekhyun would soon start searching for Jongdae too.

It wasn’t until then, that Jongdae realized how much faith he had in Baekhyun. That he wasn’t scared because he was simply convinced that Baekhyun would save him - like a damsel in distress. 

“Well then?” Jongdae hesitantly squished Jongin’s hand. “What are we waiting for then?”

Jongin’s face brightened and he looked more human than ever.

“Right, let’s go!”

Turned out that the place where (as Jongin claimed) Soo leisured the most was pretty far away in the west wing of the palace. They didn’t converse much, save from Jongin’s “we’re gonna be there soon”, which left Jongdae a lot of time to admire the polished chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and expensive-looking paintings showing creatures of questionable resemblance to humans. Most of the characters shown on them looked similar to Jongin: taking either a form of a bird or other animals with manlike features. 

They looked scary - Jongdae noted absently, - scary but oddly beautiful. That kind of raw, wild beauty that reminded him of Baekhyun. Which kind of made sense considering that he also was a demon. Although not an animalistic-like one.

Finally, they arrived at a door with a doorknob polished so much that it was reflecting the light thrown by the candlelight. Jongin scratched his head.

“Better, eh, leave it to me?” he glanced at Jongdae, making sure that he didn’t have any objections. (He didn’t. He also didn’t consider himself in a position to have any objections.) 

Jongin sighed with relief and let go of Jongdae’s hand to knock at the door.

“Soo?” he called, hissing the name fondly, “I encountered a matter of great urgency.”

“ _ I’m reading, come later. _ ” replied a deep voice, making Jongdae shiver. It took him a moment to comprehend that the voice replied in Latin. 

“But Soo…” Jongin whined, pushing the door. The bell above their heads clacked. “It really can’t wait.”

“ _ What possibly can be so important? _ ” ‘Soo’ groaned and Jongdae felt himself shrinking before the door even opened fully. Whoever Soo was he sure did sound terrifying.

Jongin opened the door further and with one swift motion pushed Jongdae inside. 

The room was dipped in hues, and slightly flogging with the incense burning at both sides of the door. The scent was thick and sweet, but even that couldn’t fully hide the biting odour of smoke and fire. Its intensity made Jongdae’s eyes fill up with tears. He raised his hand to quickly wipe the moisture off his face. He still couldn’t spot the host and he would rather not face him covered with snot and salty tears.

Jongin cursed, clearly misunderstanding Jongdae’s action.

“Crap, no please, please, don’t cry, Jongdae, no, no, no. We’re not going to harm you,” he whispered, panicking, his hands flying to touch Jongdae’s face. 

It made Jongdae jerk away. No matter how sweet Jongin appeared to be, he was still a demon whom Jongdae didn’t know. He was about to apologize for his reaction when suddenly someone raised from their seat in the corner.

Logically, speaking - it couldn’t be another other than infamous  _ Soo _ . Jongdae faintly considered falling on his knees, as Soo turned his big eyes on him. He looked far more human than Jongin, but the effect was almost completely destroyed by his enormous wings and thick, inky horns. His eyes weren't black like Jongin’s, nor were they red like Baekhyun’s. They were the brightest thing in the entire room - gold like liquid amber and warm like a spitting fire. 

“Jongdae?” He repeated the name with his deep voice. “Did you say  _ Jongdae, _ Jongin?”

Jongin blinked with surprise and cocked his head to the side.

“I- yes?” he replied with a question, “That’s his name. Jongdae.” he confirmed.

Jongdae stepped forward and straightened up his back, hoping that the demons couldn’t hear the cluttering of his teeth.

“Jongdae is me. For I am Jongdae” he said firmly with a bow and instantly cringed at the phrasing of his sentence. He could add this to his list of Top 10 Awkward First Meetings with Demons. The list itself was not long.

“Jongdae the human?” inquired Soo and if Jongdae wasn’t kind of shaking in fear, he would laugh at the question.

“That’s me,” he shrieked. 

Soo hummed and suddenly his wings and horns started vanishing, as if they were dissolving into the thin air. And somehow, somewhat, a few seconds later, Soo looked perfectly human, without even a hint of supernaturality.

“Oh, shit,” slipped past Jongdae’s lips. The smoke coming from the incenses made him feel dizzy. 

“Hello, Jongdae it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Kyungsoo,” Soo smiled softly, “Baekhyun told me a lot about you.”

“Oh, crap,” Jongdae muttered, his head was spilling. 

He blinked, trying to wrap his mind around so much information at once. He stumbled backwards, colliding with Jongin’s arm, the feathers scratching at his bare shoulder. Quickly, Jongdae jumped away, an apology on his lips, when suddenly he felt himself slip and soon the world around him abruptly turned all black.

✗✗✗

Jongdae was swimming in the safe land of the subconscious. He was dreaming. A pretty dream with Baekhyun’s hand on the small of his back and his gentle whisper in Jongdae’s ear. A dream that sometimes turned into reality during their lazy make-out sessions. A dream that made his heart flare with something gentle and warm.

“ _ You have a crush idiot, _ ” he hissed at himself in the dream, trying to put Dream Baekhyun’s hand back on his chest.

“Oh, my lord, Soo, he’s raving. What have we done?” said someone nervously and Jongdae frowned.

Firstly, Baekhyun had never mistaken his name. Even in his dreams. Secondly, it wasn’t Baekhyun’s voice.

“No, Jongin. He’s just mumbling in his sleep,” sighed someone loudly and the gust of their breath ruffled Jongdae’s bangs.

“Fuck,” Jongdae woke up with a very quiet groan.

“Shush…” someone murmured over him and Jongdae - with difficulty - blinked his eyes open.

Two heads were looming over him - one human and the other one… not so human. Jongdae closed his eyes again, thousands of thoughts running through his head.

“Jongin, drop the demon look. Clearly, Jongdae is afraid.” said Kyungsoo, putting a wet cloth over Jongdae’s forehead.

Words died in Jongdae’s throat.

“But you said that he lives with Baekhyun!” Jongin pouted.

Kyungsoo shook his head, “It doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s familiar with our non-human form, Nini.” he explained, pushing the hair off Jongdae’s forehead. “Baekhyun treats him in a very… special way.”

Jongdae’s eyes opened again at the mention of Baekhyun’s name. All the pieces of the puzzle finally found their rightful place in his head.

“Baekhyun’s here?” he hissed, looking around. He was quite surprised to see that a bird-like creature known as Jongin looked like a very normal person now. 

Kyungsoo chuckled, “No, he’s not here. But if my hunch is correct he should arrive soon.”

That made Jongdae a little bit more relieved. He slowly breathed-in the flower-scented air. It still smelled like sweet burning petals. Jongdae rubbed the corners of his eyes and pushed himself to sit up. Once again, he took a look at the room they were in. It felt safer knowing that the ceiling was closed and the floor wasn’t made of burning coal. Despite the gloomy wall paint and black furniture, the room looked normal. Certainly not how Jongdae imagined the private chambers of one of the most powerful demons to look like. Which reminded him of who exactly the person next to him was.

Jongdae almost fell off the sofa, reaching his hand out as a greeting.

“Gods, I’m so sorry. Once again, I’m Jongdae. Sorry for fainting on you like that. I didn’t see that coming. You didn't see that coming. It was awkward. Cannot be undone though!” he laughed nervously, “But, um, I hope that it can be forgiven. Ah, while I breathe, I hope.” he rambled, “In Latin, it’s, um, dum  _ spirero spero _ \- no that can’t be right.  _ Dum spiroro _ -

“ _ Dum spiro spero, _ ” Kyungsoo shook his head in amusement, “I can’t believe that Baekhyun makes you learn Latin, that little-”

“Oh, no I learnt all by myself,” Jongdae pipped, interrupting Kyungsoo mindlessly. “I mean, more like, I am still in the process of learning. I thought it would be nice for him to have someone to talk to in Latin.” he added quickly with a blush growing on his cheeks. Did he sound whipped? A little. But maybe Kyungsoo would spare him and wouldn’t tell Baekhyun that.

Kyungsoo arched his eyebrow and Jongin giggled. 

Suddenly the silence of the room broke in half like thunder when something cracked in the distance. Kyungsoo and Jongin exchanged knowing looks and stepped away from Jongdae. 

Someone’s voice - rich, deep and powerful vibrated through the walls.

“Where is he?” the voice spiked with anger and laced with worry rolled across the room, and - most presumably - the entire building. The voice like a lightning bolt running down Jongdae’s spine that made his toes curl and heart melt. The voice like the sun on a cloudy day - pushing away all the fears and worries.  _ Baekhyun. _

“Told you, he’d come,” Kyungsoo rolled his eyes when Jongin smiled knowingly.

Distantly a sound akin to wood breaking in half could be heard. 

“I think he broke the front door,” mumbled Jongin, with the corner of his eyes Jongdae saw his body transforming back into his previous more bird-like form. It seemed like he was more comfortable looking like that.

“Do Kyungsoo, where is he? I can smell him!” resounded in the hallway, this time Baekhyun’s voice coming from much closer. It was accompanied with some rumbling deep sound that was slowly turning Jongdae’s bones into a goo. “Jongdae, where are you?” the rumbling intensified.

Jongdae pulled himself upwards, standing up on his shaky legs. If someone tried breaking his kneecaps he wouldn’t be able to - as they were currently made of cotton. 

“Baekhyun?” he called faintly and the noise stopped. 

The door didn’t open. They were ripped out of its hinges, cracking loudly. Thick steam flowing into the room unmistakably smelling like roses. The fog almost clouded Jongdae’s vision. It was in the last moment when he saw a blurry figure moving toward him and opened his arms for them before the person fell at him, pressing to his chest. The comforting warmth started flowing through Jongdae’s body and he instinctively nuzzled his face at the crook of the person’s neck.

“Jongdae,” Baekhyun breathed out with relief, just like he sometimes did in Jongdae’s dreams. “I was dead-worried.” His arms squeezed Jongdae's waist and he laid a gentle kiss at the side of his neck. “How the hell did you end up getting here?”

Jongdae’s hand raked through Baekhyun’s hair. His fingers brushed through his luscious strands carefully, slowly, as he wanted the moment to last as long as it was possible. His breath hitched as his fingertips traced the thick base of horns that certainly weren’t there the last time he saw Baekhyun. Jongdae wanted to raise his head, to see, to search his most favoured face for the changes, to seek subtle differences of his lover’s body, but as soon as he tried moving his head, Baekhyun’s hand pressed his nose back into the crook of his neck.

“Don’t,” he rasped in a hushed way, “Please don’t. Not yet,” his voice sounded crisp and thin. More fragile than Jongdae had ever heard.

His heart stuttered.

“Okay,” he breathed and hooked his arms over Baekhyun’s neck. Normally, he would argue but today he could let it slide.

“Ah, they are so cute,” Jongin cooed but his comment overlapped with the sound of Jongdae’s loud heartbeat.

Kyungsoo hummed, “I can’t believe that they brought all of this emotional tension here. It’s gonna take months for all these feelings to evaporate from here...”

The tips of Baekhyun’s fingers pressed against the small of Jongdae’s back. His nails delicately scratched the spot, making Jongdae shudder.

“You can look now,” he whispered into Jongdae’s ear. “I’m all good,” he added and let go off his waist.

Jongdae squished the bitter feeling, pushing it back into its rightful place - deep into the corners of his mind. He feared that he would never get rid of that painful void overtaking his heart whenever Baekhyun was stepping away from him. 

He looked at the person in front of him and felt himself smiling.

“You’re always good, Baek,” words out before the thinking process was fully over.

With the last one tiny finger that was left lingering on Baekhyun’s skin, he felt his muscles tense. Like the body of a frightened animal. Or a predator ready to pounce. He pressed the finger a bit harder, to feel the muscle jump.

“Thank you for coming for me,” Jongdae breathed out, the stress slowly dissolving in his chest.

Baekhyun huffed and rolled his eyes, “Can’t have you running around the demon’s realm without supervision now, can I?”

“Really cute,” Jongin squealed quietly.

✗✗✗

As soon as they stepped out of the mirror, Baekhyun pushed Jongdae against the wall, one hand on his chest, the other on the wall. His entire body was pressed hard against Jongdae’s, leaving only as much space as required for Jongdae’s chest to rise and fall.

“What the hell, Baekhyun?” Jongdae frowned, hand flying to grip the back of Baekhyun’s neck. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to pull him forward or shove him away. 

Baekhyun’s eyes were hard and his red irises were burning bright like a hellfire. Jongdae’s next words - a nasty remark about personal space - died in his throat. He gulped loudly, trying to wiggle himself away.

But when he wanted, Baekhyun could be really strong. Jongdae blamed the “he’s a demon” part for that.

“Seriously, what the fuck?” Jongdae repeated, a little bit weaker. He slapped Baekhyun’s arm. “Talk to me, the hell? Baek? You’re kind of freaking me out, right now?”

Baekhyun inhaled sharply but his hand slipped down Jongdae’s chest. He exhaled and took a tiny step back. Jongdae, however, wasn’t about to let go of it.

“Spill,” he said and pushed a finger in the middle of Baekhyun’s chest. “What the hell was that? Demonic genes woke up inside of you or what?” 

“Don’t joke about that,” Baekhyun looked away pushing his hair out of his eyes. “You haven’t seen my demonic form so-”

Jongdae sneered. This time he was the one who pressed himself against Baekhyun. He didn’t expect the other to stumble backwards.

“Shit, be careful,” Jongdae’s hand flew to the front of Baekhyun’s shirt. “And don’t try changing the subject. Everything was alright, wasn’t it? At the palace. So why act like a freak now?”

“Because we- you were at the palace!” Baekhyun snapped. “You were at the palace _ alone _ …” he specified, the last word hushed like a secret.

Jongdae waited patiently. He had seen Baekhyun breaking before. Crumbling at the edges and burning in the center. He knew that sometimes he needed time to collect the pieces.

“You went there alone and… how, and most importantly  _ why _ ?” Baekhyun shuddered as if the situation was playing right in front of his eyes. “Do you even realize how dangerous that was?” he hissed, looking back at Jongdae, “What made you go there, huh? Wanted to find out if you can send me back? Well, I don’t need your help with that, if you’re so sick of me, just tell me so!” he went on, “I thought we had… I don’t know! Something? But clearly, all that time you were just thinking about how you could get rid of me, weren’t you?”

“I- what? No, are you crazy?” Jongdae cried, shocked at Baekhyun’s outburst, offended with his implications, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“You broke the code! Guessed the opening quote!” Baekhyun said with accusation. “I don’t know how, I don’t know why but-”

“What code? You’re not making any sense,” Jongdae raised his hands to the ceiling, “I literally was swallowed by this satanic shit by accident?” he looked at the mirror, “I was being my usual, you know, loser self, trying to kill some time and this crap literally pulled me inside. Look, would I waste perfectly good gin if I planned this,” he crouched down and pointed at the ugly, dry stain on the floor with both of his hands. “Be realistic, Baekhyun, I would at least put it down.” 

That seemed to draw some realization to Baekhyun.

“Oh,” he breathed out, “You ended up down there by an accident?”

Jongdae snorted, shaking his head, “Obviously. I have no desire to roam through the world of demons who are thirsty for my ass.”

Baekhyun laughed, though it sounded breathy and kind of nervous. 

“Guess you’re right.” he leaned down and started picking up the pieces of the broken glass. “But still, don’t ever do it again alone, okay?” his eyes found Jongdae’s and they looked so pleading and sweet that Jongdae almost choked on his spit.

“I… y-yeah, sure.” he bit his lips and looked up, praying to whoever inhabited the sky that he wasn’t at wrong with his next words, “I’m your human, you’re my demon, right? We stick together.”

A tiny shred of glass fell out of Baekhyun’s hand. Jongdae watched his face carefully. Watched the softness tearing through his sharp features and his sharp teeth absently nibbling at his soft bottom lip. Sometimes Baekhyun needed time. Jongdae could give him that much.

“Technically it takes a mark to make you mine and me yours,” Baekhyun whispered quietly, refusing to meet Jongdae’s eyes. He was blinking rapidly as if he wanted to blink something away.

“A physical one? A demon’s mark?”

“Kyungsoo told you?” Baekhyun looked at him with surprise.

Jongdae shook his head, “Jongin. He also mentioned that I reek of you.”

Baekhyun grumbled, “I doubt he used that word.” he puffed and gently took Jongdae’s hand to trace his wrist. “It’s too early for me to leave a mark on you. You… you deserve better than this.”

Jongdae interlaced his fingers with Baekhyun’s.

“We could always start with a date,” he suggested, ignoring his growing embarrassment.

He was close enough to hear Baekhyun’s breath hitch.

“We could… we could start with that, that would be great.”

_ The end. _

**Author's Note:**

> spare a kudos, spare a comment
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/sunwritten_)


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